Republican officials, partnered with the Aitken Bible Historical Foundation and the First American Bible Project, are lobbying to have editions of the Aitken Bible provided for use in public school classrooms. The initiative has been especially popular in Tennessee, but…
Kanakuk survivors calling for support as Peter Newman’s parole hearing approaches
Serial child sex abuser Peter Newman will be eligible for parole later this year due to the terms of his sentencing, and survivors of his abuse at Kanakuk Kamps are opposing that possibility. Newman is one among a long list…
Kanakuk Kamps hit with another lawsuit from child sex abuse survivor for fraudulent concealment
A new lawsuit filed against Kanakuk Kamps June 24 by child sex abuse survivor Andrew Summersett of Denver seeks to expose how the “largest youth camp in the U.S. intentionally omitted critical information about known cases of child sexual abuse…
Former Christian school employee and Kanakuk staffer Matthew Harmon arrested for child sexual assault
On May 28, after a yearlong investigation, the Dallas Police Child Exploitation Squad arrested Matthew Harmon, 46, on charges of sexual assault of a child for an offense that allegedly occurred in 2007. The alleged incident involved a victim Harmon…
Notes from the abused at Kamp Kanakuk: ‘You know what Satan is doing, but you still let him in’
Editor’s note: Names of some survivors are omitted to respect their privacy. Since the exposure of sex abuser Pete Newman at Kanakuk Kamps in 2009, a growing community of child sex abuse survivors and justice advocates has formed. In interviews…
What are they wearing in District One? The Met Gala, Gaza and another real-life connection to the Hunger Games
On May 6, celebrities waltzed into the Metropolitan Museum of Art for the year’s biggest night of fashion, extravagance and outrageous displays of wealth: The Met Gala. One ticket to the Met Gala costs around $75,000, which the BBC points…
Putting the wicked to rest: Creating teal steeples beyond Sexual Violence Awareness Month
I turned on the TV / And flipped it over to the news / And what I saw I almost couldn’t comprehend. I saw a preacher man in cuffs / He’d taken money from the church / He’d stuffed his…
Grace Valentine, ice cream and sources of empowerment for women in complementarian circles
After a Good Friday worship service, Anne-Tillery, a divinity school friend and I, were discussing gender roles in the church over ice cream at the local Kilwins. The night before, we had found ourselves among a sizable group of sorority…
Wrestling with the reality of sexual abuse in the Easter story in Surviving God
In their new book, Surviving God: A New Vision of God Through the Eyes of Sexual Abuse Survivors, Grace Ji-Sun Kim and Susan Shaw offer a feminist and intersectional understanding of God that challenges traditional ways of Christian thinking. Kim…